The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has joined forces with ABTA - The Travel Association to warn people about the dangers of travelling whilst uninsured.

According to new research by ABTA, many UK holidaymakers are unaware of the costs of medical treatment abroad and may be putting themselves at risk of huge medical bills if something goes wrong.

Nearly 1/3 of people now travel abroad without insurance, despite the need for medical assistance being relatively common. According to ABTA research, 18% of UK holidaymakers have visited a doctor or hospital while abroad.

Young travellers are most at risk: almost half (48%) will have a holiday abroad without travel insurance. Recently released FCO research has also found that 4 out of 5 young people admit to taking part in more adventurous behaviour on holiday - yet fewer than half check that their insurance covers risky pursuits.

We all look forward to taking a holiday. However, it is very important that we make sure we have adequate cover when travelling abroad. Many countries do not have national schemes to cover the cost of healthcare and treatment abroad can therefore be very costly. It is just not worth taking the risk.